


Tegan's Story

by obliviousally



Category: Original Work
Genre: Anthropomorphic, Cursed, Deer-girl, Fantasy, Furry, Gen, NaNoWriMo, Rabbit-girl
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2013-03-24
Updated: 2013-03-23
Packaged: 2017-12-06 07:12:39
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 10
Words: 10,810
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/732872
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/obliviousally/pseuds/obliviousally
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>This is a story I began for NaNoWriMo in 2012 that I'm gradually picking and fussing at. It's an endless work in progress and I cannot guarantee when it'll get updated, but this is a much nicer place to keep things orderly than tumblr or Google Drive! </p><p>I encourage and welcome suggestions and constructive criticism! This is, like I said, a work in progress, so don't be surprised to see blank spaces for names or missing bits of plot!</p><p>[i]Teenaged Tegan had always lived a quiet life with her family in the forest, but when she's cursed by a strange witch who looks like a mink, the changing of seasons causes a drastic change in her. Now one of the animal people of the deep, magic forest, Tegan sets out on a journey to break her curse, but discovers it's more complex than it seems.[/i]</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Beginning

The stretch from the warm summer season into the chilly autumn days always seemed much shorter compared to the changing of season in winter and spring. Oh, the wait for the thawing of snow and the tiny sprouts of flowers seemed to last forever, but when it came you enjoyed every new day of a little less snow and a little more warmth, looking forward to digging up the earth for a new garden and watching the flowers slowly creep up from the dirt in small, green little threads. Tegan found something to enjoy in all the seasons, but fall was the precursor to winter and winter always had more work involved in it than spring and summer. There were logs to be gathered and the house needed to be shuttered up from the cold. The pantry should be stocked early on, in case snow decided to come early. All the warm weather clothes should be packed away into chests and closets, and the cold weather clothes - jackets and cozy boots, thermals and long sleeves - pulled out for the family. Most of these things fell on the eldest daughter - herself - to take care of. While he mother was still relatively young and lively, an accident a few years back made it hard for her to do a lot of more physical work, especially repeatedly climbing stairs and making numerous trips around the town and countryside. However, despite all the work that fell on her head, Tegan didn’t mind. Not only was it work she was used to and involved talking to people she enjoyed speaking with - no one really spoke ill of the Deerfield family, after all - she had her sister, Darby, to accompany her on these trips. 

In late September, after school was well under way, Tegan would leave her mother to close up shop at the bakery while she went to pick up Darby from school and take care of errands. A stop at the grocer, to pick up extracts for cakes and pastries. A stop at the butcher to put in an order of meat for the next month. A stop to pick up Darby’s new winter boots - her old ones had been hand-me-downs from her older sister and had finally, after many years, given up the ghost and worn through to the point they could no longer be repaired. 

The last stops for the day was a treat for both of them. Tegan always bought her sister something small for helping out around their bakery shoppe, since money was all but useless for a girl her age and she seemed to enjoy the little gifts a lot better, anyhow. Today, Darby had picked out a new book of fairy tales to add to her ever-growing collection. Tegan’s treat for herself was new yarn for knitting - she wanted to make a shawl before winter hit - and a bag of fabric remnants that one of the shopkeepers would save and sell to her cheap. 

On the way back to the bakery to pick up their bikes, the sisters talked about the remainder of the year. Darby said she was almost done with her Christmas list and told Tegan that it was a surprise and no one could see it until it was perfect. Tegan inquired how school was going and got a long tale about lunch gossip and one of the teachers planning a week-long Halloween event, which Darby sounded really excited about and began rambling off costumes she wanted to make and if her sister would help her. The chatter made the walk through the small village go much quicker and, when they reached the bakery, Tegan took the time to slip inside the empty shop and restock some of the ingredients before locking the building back up. The two loaded up their bikes and headed off to the family’s little cottage in the forest as the sun started to color the sky as it began to set.

The path they took back home was a winding trail that was used by a handful of others that lived in the forest, as well. Although, once a certain point was reached, the trail branched off in half a dozen different directions, all leading to other little cottages - except for one which led to a meadow full of sheep. The path to the Deerfields’ home was the third to the last on the right side. When Tegan was old enough to go back and forth to school on her own, her mother had put a tall, wooden stake in the ground at their fork, so she would remember which one to take back home. In the spring and summer, morning glories grew up the stake and made it stand out even more. In the fall and winter, Tegan would put a wreath on the stake to keep it visible. 

This smaller trail ducked into the trees and the light was always dimmer under the conifers and pines that mingled with the deciduous trees that were bursting with warm autumn colors, gradually losing their brilliant summer green. The path under the trees was short, however, and it lead out into a scene almost from one of Darby’s fairy tale books. A quaint little stone cottage was settled into a clearing. It was surrounded by flowers and one or two small trees - one taller than the other, both planted when each sister was born. The cottage had an arched, wooden front door, a chimney, and a garden ready to be harvested behind it. The sisters’ mother could be seen out back in the garden, a basket in hand, and plucking ripe vegetables from their vines or stalks. The girls led their bikes into a shed next to the house and gathered up their goods from the earlier errands as they made their way to the house, calling briefly to their mother to let her know they were home.

“Mama, Tegan bought me a new book,” Darby exclaimed as she ran through the small garden rows, holding the book high in the air for her mother to see. 

Their mother straighten herself up to see the book her daughter held, adjusting the basket on her arm as she did so, “Oh, sweetness, we haven’t even finished the last one yet!” It was true, Darby and their mother were only about halfway through the last book she’d acquired. They read it together for bedtime stories.

“I know, but I thought I’d think ahead. In case there’s no good books over the winter.” The young girl wasn’t far off, often the stores in the village didn’t get new stock if the winter was particularly bad. Usually, just the grocer and butcher would go out of their way to make sure they had a stock of merchandise for the village. Things like books and trinkets and yarn weren’t necessities and could be waited on until the weather broke. “This one has a story about an owl named Raoul and a big, gruff man named Bluebeard!”

Their mother gave Tegan an expression that read ‘did you really buy her a book with Bluebeard in it?!’ and Tegan shrugged with a sympathetic look in response. “Let Mama pick the stories from that one, okay, Darbs? Some of them might be pretty scary.”

Darby set her face in an expression that made Tegan think she was going to complain, but she nodded, “Okay. We have to finish the other book first, so maybe the ones in this one won’t be as scary when we get to them!” As if the stories might change in that time.

Their mother laughed a little, obviously thinking that very thing. “That sounds like a good idea, sweetie. But now, do you want to help me make this salad for dinner?” 

“Yes! Let me put my book away and I’ll meet you in the kitchen in five,” Darby said matter-of-factly as she spun around and ran into the house. 

Their mother raised her eyebrows at Tegan and they both laughed a little. “Well, that was certainly prompt of her. How was your errands?” When she reached the door, her mother held it open for her daughter to slip inside the house before she let it swing closed behind the two of them.

“Oh, uneventful,” Tegan commented as she removed her shoes and cardigan, carrying her bag into the kitchen and sitting it on the large table in the center of the room. It was the dining table, but doubled as a counter or island for cooking, the seats were akin to picnic table seats and tucked underneath it when not in use. “Darby’s excited about Halloween at school, ask her about it. She has a dozen costume ideas already,” the girl rolls her eyes a little. “I picked up some new yarn for that shawl I was talking about knitting,” she comments as she removes the newly bought items from her bag and places them on the table, “and I picked up my bag of fabric from Ms. Fortuny. I think I’ll be able to make a nice patchwork skirt for the fall with it.”

Her mother nodded as she went about getting the salad ingredients together and ready to prepare, “We should see if there’s anything that needs mended for the winter, as well. Maybe you’ll luck out and get some extra fabrics from some old items we can’t repair.”

Tegan smiled, “I’m going to try and pull that stuff down this week, hopefully. I hate to pack up all the summer clothes just yet, because it feels like we might get a few more warm days. At the very least, I’ll pull the blankets down tomorrow, since it’s been cold at night,” she comments as she puts away the food, spices, and extracts into their proper places in the cupboards as her sister returns to help with the salad.

“Today at school,” Darby began as she pulled out one of the table benches to kneel on as pulled a bowl and a bag head of lettuce towards her, “Bailey said her and her mother went into the city over summer break and they went to an art museum and saw paintings of animal people. So we were thinking it would be neat to dress up as animals for Halloween!” As the young girl talked, she shredded up the lettuce with her small hands. “We could sew little paws for our hands and maybe make little ears on bobby pins or something! We’re trying to keep it a secret so no one else takes our idea. Mr. Rowen wants to have a week long Halloween celebration, so I want to have something really neat to dress up as!”

The other two let Darby chatter on about her Halloween plans and her re-telling friends’ summer adventures as they went about finishing up dinner - pulling down plates, silverware, and mugs for hot tea. As Darby’s story wore down, she went about setting the table for dinner and spooning salad into bowls for all three of them, then she pulled out the other bench so they could all sit at the table. After food was served, they all joined hands and Tegan said a small prayer, thankful for their bountiful garden and those that help them keep food on their table. 

After dinner and small talk about the bakery and plans for winter pastries and sweets, little bits of gossip about fellow villagers, and the oncoming change in the seasons, plates were gathered up and the kitchen cleaned. Another log was tossed onto the fire in the living room and candles were light to bathe the room in warm light. Electric cables hadn’t been strung this deep into the forest. They had it in the village, but not out this far out and most of those that lived all they way out in the forest knew how to live well without it. Tegan did find it to be an convenience, but seeing the damage that needed to be done in order to have it, she knew it wasn’t worth it. Despite the lack of wired electricity, they did own a few items that were battery powered, including a generator in case of emergencies, but it was rarely needed or used. What they did use frequently, however, was the radio. The station they picked up this far out came from the country nearby and was pleasant for background music, as they played a mix of country music and oldies, which her mother enjoyed. 

The night went on as it normally did. Darby and their mother reading from the fairy tale book, taking turns as characters and using funny voices. Tegan would knit or sew for an hour or two before preparing items to be baked early in the morning to be taken to the bakery the next day.

It was a pleasant, simple way to live, but Tegan didn’t mind it one bit.


	2. Accusation

The winter passed, as it always did, cold and snowy. There had been a particularly harsh blizzard in early January that kept most of the townsfolk shuttered away inside their homes for a few days, but when the weather had broken, the snow ceased to fall, and the sun shined down on the white landscape, Tegan made a much needed trip into the village for some supplies. Their food was fine, as plenty of meat had been bought prior to the holiday season and some had been smoked or made into jerky, and some things, like ham, kept for longer than one would think. But things like vegetables and drinks - tea and juices - were dreadfully low in supply. On top of which, Tegan knew raspberry tea would be a necessity soon and she was eager to get out of the cottage and into the fresh air. 

A promise was made to stop at the bakery and post a sign to let customers know when it would be open next - later in the week - and that they would offer a sale so those who needed extra bread and such on account of the weather, would be able to get some at a discount. 

The snow was too deep to take the bike, but the path back into the village had been travelled recently, as boot prints were apparent in the packed down snow and it continued to crunch beneath her own boots. The walk was not too bad, despite the bite the breeze had, and the sun made the day brilliant and pleasant to enjoy. The branches hung heavy with clouds of white snowflakes and the birds and small critters had come out to search for food in the sun. 

Down in the village, Tegan stopped by the bakery first, making sure everything was in order and tossing some old, hardened bread out for the birds behind the shop. She wrote up a little sign, hanging it in the window of the front door so it could be seen. After, the door was locked up and went along for her errands. 

“Oy! Tegan! Could you help me with some things?” The voice was Rupert [name], who owned the book shop about eight buildings down from the Deerfield Bakery. He was a tall, thin man, as most book shop owners tended to be, Tegan noticed. He was carrying a box, presumably filled with books or some such – he also sold trinkets, bookmarks, stationary, things like that – and he waved to her as he paused on his trip. 

Tegan made her way over, walking carefully through the deep snow that still hadn’t been shoveled. “Mr. [name], I didn’t expect to see you in town today!” Tegan was known for always being busy with the shop or running errands with her family and often came into the village on bad days if it was need. Most of the other families would wait until both the weather and the travelling routes were much clearer. 

“Well, I figure I should try to get a jump on things, since the weather was nice and all. A little tromping through the snow isn’t going to kill me.” Mr. [name] said with a smile, “And, please, call me Rupert. My old man is Mr. [name] and I’m not that old yet!” 

“Okay! Rupert it is then.” He was right, however, Tegan remembered he wasn’t too much older than she was, probably in his twenties. But he had a wife and a baby on the way who would probably be born in the spring and, more often than not, once someone got married, they were Mr. and Mrs. to the other villagers, especially the younger onces. But Rupert always had a lot of kids in his shop and he didn’t want to feel like an old man, she assumed. Getting older is hard enough as is without being referred to like your parents and such are. “What do you need help with? I took care of the bakery already, so I’ve got plenty of time before I need to get back home.”

“I’m pulling some books to put in storage, you know, stuff that doesn’t get much attention and ends up all dusty and musty. I’m going to take them to the market in the spring and see if I can sell them, or at least give them away to a bigger crowd,” he says, “But it’s going to take forever for just me to do it. Do you mind helping out? I’ll let you take home a book or two as payment.” 

It was a hard offer to pass up, though Tegan would have done it for free. “Absolutely! I don’t mind one bit!”

Rupert sighed with relief, as if he wasn’t sure the girl would want to help out at all. “There’s boxes by the front door of the shop. My storage is around the side of the building,” he pointed ahead of him, down the alleyway between the stores that was filled with snowdrifts. “I’m sure, after a trip or two, most of the snow should be packed down, so it the whole thing should speed up then.”

Tegan nodded, “That should be no problem, I’m used to carrying things through the snow anyhow, this should be a piece of cake,” she said with a smile, “I’ll grab a box and hurry back over so you can show me where to put them.” With that, she was off to the book shop, sprinting through the snow and causing the powdery top coat to be blown up into the air, sparkling like glitter in the winter sun.

After a few trips, the snow did pack down and left a nice clear path for the two to come and go down as they carried boxes of books, neatly labeled and sealed, to the storage room on the side of the building. Rupert took the last box so he could lock the room up and Tegan made her way back to the book shop to look for a book.

On the way there, she nearly collided with a woman coming down the boot-printed sidewalk as she came out of the alley. “Oh gosh! I’m so sorry!” Tegan stopped to make sure the woman was okay and, thankfully, she hadn’t knocked the poor lady over. 

The woman was wearing a deep green cloak, like the color of evergreen needles; the edges had beautifully detailed embroidery in a similar green shade. The woman didn’t look up, but Tegan caught a flash of white as the woman reached out to grasp her arm.

“Oh, there’s no need to be sorry about, dear,” the woman said, her voice a whisper, “When the seasons change, so shall you.”

When Tegan’s arm was released, the woman shuffled off down the sidewalk without another word. Tegan watched her for a moment, until she heard footsteps behind her and turned her head to see Rupert approaching from the alley, “Who was that?,” he asked.

Tegan turned to point to the strange cloaked woman, but she was gone, “I..I don’t know. Must have been someone passing through. They’re gone now, though.” They both looked at each other with a good amount of confusion before Tegan nodded and Rupert did the same. 

“C’mon, let’s find you something good to read for the rest of the winter, huh?”


	3. Transformation

Months had passed since the strange woman had told her that she would change when the seasons changed and Tegan had all but forgotten the words uttered to her that snowy day in the village. There were other things on her mind and keeping her busy. The final thawing of the snow came with a new set of chores. Cleaning out the garden so it would be ready to be sowed when the ground thawed, sweeping out the house and opening the windows for some fresh, if chill, air, and sorting through winter clothes.

These were the things that kept her occupied until early one morning she awoke with what felt like a migraine centered right at her forehead. As she pulled herself out of bed, her whole body ached, which struck her as strange because she hadn’t done much in the way of physical labor the day before. This wasn’t an ache she was familiar with. It wasn’t cramps and it wasn’t work soreness, the kind you get after a hard day of yard work. This was a deep ache, it almost felt like it was in her bones. 

A trip to the bathroom, she concluded, was in order, and perhaps she’d take some of the aspirin they’d picked up on their last trip into the city. While she didn’t like to take medication unless absolutely necessary, this felt like it was going to be one of those situations. 

Maybe she was just coming down with something. It wasn’t an impossible thought, with the change of seasons lots of people got sick or allergies flared up. Maybe she’d finally developed an allergy to something, for all she knew.

The bathroom held an unexpected surprise as she gazed into the mirror in confusion and horror. Something was dreadfully wrong with her face, her head, her ears, and when she raised her hands to her face, something was wrong with them, as well.

Her eyes, wide and round now, and colored a deep, chocolate brown, tried to take stock of what she was viewing in the mirror. Hands, fingers, somehow fused together so she had two digits and a thumb on each hand. They were a dark brown color on the fingers - digits - though they didn’t seem to hurt to move. On her palms, rough skin, almost like a cat or dog’s paw pads. Her ears were no longer even human. Stretched out and made of thin skin, the texture akin to a deer or a mouse, she thought as she touched them. Her face - and she suddenly realized, her skin - was no longer that warm, milk-tea color. Instead, it was a light chocolate shade, like the fancy chocolates you could buy in the city, and…furred. She had fur. It was short and soft, covering her whole body, she assumed. It broke off in places, and turned to a fawn or cream color on her face and neck, around her eyes and her new ears. Her nose was no longer human, but was a black animal’s nose set along a black stripe which went up between her eyes. Cream-colored, almost white, freckles scattered over her nose and under her eyes. She had faint freckles, yes, and in the summer they’d get darker due to the sun and such, but they were never so obvious. 

Then, what she was sure had given her the terrible headache she woke up with, were the antlers. They sat atop her head, two small antlers, not bigger than four or five inches in height. They were white, covered in a fine velvet with three little branches jutting out. Her hair was tangled loosely around them, still messy from sleep.

Tegan swallowed hard and the words from that day earlier in the winter came back to her. When the seasons change, so shall you.

A long exhale slipped from her lips as she stared at herself in the mirror. What would she do? Could she let her mother and sister see her? Should she? Should she run away? How long would this last? She couldn’t go into the village in this state, there was no way to hide her new features. Thoughts raced through her mind. How, why, what, where?

She took stock of the situation as well as she could. There was no reason to completely freak out, it’s not af if she was missing anything or gravely injured or dead. Simply put, she was altered. Different, but still the same at the core. She decided she would not rush into her mother’s bedroom and alarm her, shock her awake with an emergency. She would get dressed, go about her daily morning business of putting on the fires, putting the bakery goods in to bake, and making breakfast. When her mother and sister awoke, she would figure things out from there.


	4. Corridor

The corridor of towering trees stood in front of her. They were exactly where the group of children in the small village she passed through said they would be. Tegan gazed upwards, her eyes following the bark and the dark green needles that jutted out from the branches. The trees rose to reach the sky like an upside down 'V', fading into the mingling warm and cool colors of the dawn. 

Looking forward, the seemed to stretch forever into the dark forest treeline. Deep and dark, all but an arched entrance where, she could only assume, the path opened into a meadow of some sort. 

The children in the village said there was magic past the tall trees, maybe even a different land. Tales of creatures who looked as she did now, human shaped, but with animal features. They told of a witch, a woman, cloaked in red, eyes round and black, and with brilliant white fur. No one smart ventured into the magic forest, they said, and those who did came back forever changed.

This is where I will find the woman who cursed me. This is where I will undo the curse, Tegan thought, I will get to return home soon. I will get to see my mother and sister soon. I can leave this all behind me.

A tentative step forward, followed by another and another, and soon enough she was progressing down that narrow entrance to the mystical forest.


	5. Departure

“What if you never come back?!” Darby was laying on Tegan’s bed as she moved about and packed things for her upcoming journey. The girl hadn’t been at all perturbed by her older sister’s change in appearance and had been taking the whole strange ordeal much better than either their mother or Tegan herself had at first. Tegan chalked it up to all the fairy stories she read and she thought that, if she were Darby’s age, she might not have been so upset about the whole thing either. 

“I’m going to come back. It’s not as if the forest could eat me or something.” Tegan thought it ridiculous to think she wouldn’t come back. She wasn’t trekking out in the middle of winter, where she could very well perish from the cold or something. It was spring and the weather was warming. She knew how to avoid the more predatory animals, if she even ran into any of them. She knew how to survive in the woods – what berries were edible, what streams were safe to drink from, how to make or find shelter.

“But it could! If some witch from the forest cursed you and turned you into a deer, why couldn’t the forest eat you! Or anything! Maybe there’s evil gnomes like Rumpelstiltskin or something! There could be real big bad wolves that eat people or Blue Beards or anything!”

Tegan stopped in her packing and sighed, “Darbs, I’m not going to get eaten by anything,” she hoped, “Or run into any Blue Beards or Rumplestiltskins or anything like that. I’m just looking for a single woman.”

Darby sat up and stared at her sister as if she had gone dumb. “You were cursed by a witch who turned you into a deer. I think, if anyone is talking sense here, it’s me. All I do is read about stories like this and half the time, someone ends up getting eaten in them.”

Tegan was beginning to be more worried about her sister’s focus on characters in stories getting eaten or killed or something. “Okay,” she says, humoring Darby, “What should I do about it, then?”

“You have to be prepared,” Darby said and hopped off the bed, “I’ll make you something for protection! To keep you safe from bad things and stuff.”

Tegan was unsure that would help, but she nodded as her sister wandered out of the room and into the hallway. Tegan herself went back to packing, trying to figure out what was going to be lightest to take and what was necessary. She wasn’t sure what else was deep in the forest, though she knew there was another village or two before things got too wild and uninhabited, though she did worry about whether or not people there would even be willing to help her. That was her biggest worry, other humans reacting negatively towards her. She wasn’t sure how she’d deal with that, if it happened. But she hoped for the best.

The next morning, Tegan went about her business as usual, making breakfast and putting everything in the oven to be taken to the bakery. She planned on leaving after breakfast, though she didn’t really want to leave at all. The day before, she spent time preparing for her mother and sister to be without her help. She attached a wagon to Darby’s bike, so she could pull heavier items to and from the village. For her mother, she made a cart that could be wheeled down the bike path. She explained to Darby how to help their mother and any other little details that were necessary – who’s helpful in the village, who will give a tab for buying, that sort of thing. She knew her sister was smart on her own and had spent most of the last couple years accompanying Tegan on buying errands and morning baking, so she was sure she’d be fine helping out their mother, but Tegan worried regardless.

“I promise I’ll be back in a month, or I’ll send word of where I am and how I am. I promise.” Tegan said as her mother held her tightly in a hug, though she’s sure her mother didn’t quite believe her and, honestly, Tegan wasn’t sure how she’d get word back that she was okay.

“Just write us whenever you can, anytime you see a post box, just drop a letter in for us. Anything will be better than nothing,” her mother begged.

“Yes, I will, I promise.”

“You better take this with you,” her sister said, holding out a satchel filled with something. “DON’T open it. If you open it, it ruins the protection! It’s like a Pandora’s Box or something, but with less evil and stuff.”

Tegan took the satchel and did not open it, but she did sniff it. It smelled like potpourri and felt heavy in her hand, like the weight of an apple or a pear. She nodded to her sister and tucked the satchel into her bag, “I won’t open it, I promise.” She was sure it was just a bag of flowers and leaves and trinkets, but she wasn’t going to ruin the magic her sister was going for.

“I have a promise for you, too,” Darby said, pointing up to her sister, “If you’re not back in a month, I’m coming to find you.” Both Tegan and their mother looked at Darby with shocked expressions.

“Darby, you can’t leave mom all alone,” Tegan started.

“Absolutely not! I won’t have both of my girls off gallivanting in the woods by themselves!” Their mother shook her head at both of them.

“I’m not going to leave mom alone! I’ll make sure everything’s cared for! I’m not stupid. If we don’t hear from Tegan then something bad has probably happened! No one else knows about this, who else could we turn to to find her?”

The other two continued to frown, but both knew Darby was right. Who else could they tell about what had happened? No one else would believe them.

“You wait a month and one week,” Tegan finally says, “Enough time for someone to travel back and deliver a message, or enough time for the post to get here. Five weeks. You make sure someone is able to help mom with the bakery while you’re gone.”

Darby nodded, determined, and their mother continued to frown, “Are you sure about this, Tegan? What if she never finds you? What if I lose both of you?”

“You’re not going to lose either of us, mom, I swear it. You’ll hear from me in a month, I promise.”


	6. Diary Excerpt

I haven’t kept a diary in a long time, probably since I was a child. I figured this would be as good as any to start again. 

Explaining things to Darby wasn’t as hard as I thought it would be, but explaining things to mother was much more difficult, though she wasn’t as terrified as I expected. She’s the one who suggested I try to find this woman again. Darby talked like it was a great big adventure, like from her fairy tale books. 

I thought it sounded terrifying, but I know it’s what I have to do.

As I’m writing this, I’m trying to make sense of what to take with me. I don’t know how long this journey is going to take. I don’t even know where it’s going to take me. I am, however, hopeful in that I will find what I need to find. 

I’m trying to get used to this new body I’m possessing. Walking was strange, at first, since I no longer have feet and toes, but tough hooves instead. I’m thankful I did not become a cat and have to learn how to balance with my tail. I keep toying with the small velvet horns I now have, as well. Luckily, my clothing still fits well, and doesn’t need much in the way of alterations. I have, however, caught my tops on my large ears and antlers once or twice.

I wonder why the mink woman chose a deer for me. I wonder if she even chose the animal at all. 

There’s tall tales in the country and forest about animal people that live deep within the woods. That there’s a magic within the woods that’s lost to us humans. They’re one with nature and live in harmony, or, at least, better harmony than we humans do. I wonder now, if those tales aren’t so strange or out of the ordinary, now that I’ve become what those animals are always described as.

I’m planning to travel north, as south heads to the city. there are trails out there that the huntes often take and old, overgrown roads to help lead my path. I hope to find something of use out there. I hope that I do not have to return home like this, and live in solitude and hiding out here in the forest.


	7. Journey

Once Tegan knew where she had to go, the journey didn’t seem nearly so terrifying. The forest was a place she knew well, although she’d never ventured as deep as the journey was intended to take her. That was okay, though, it was for a reason and that reason would allow her to go back to her quiet, normal life.

The man, a badger with a limp and a cane fashioned from gnarled wood, had traded her a map of the forest for some sweetbread and butter. It was an easy exchange and Tegan even took the time to sit with him and chat before departing on her journey.

Now, she was deep within the wood, carefully tracing the trails of the map with her finger. It wasn’t hard to tell this map was very old, as many small side trails depicted on it were overgrown or simply gone - lost within the forest itself. However, the main trail remained and, for that, she was happy.

Since morning, she’d been walking for a few hours and it was edging into the afternoon, the sun shining through the rough canopy of conifers and the leafy deciduous trees that rose up tall around her. The leaves case a wavering shadow on the forest floor, sharp from the shape of the leaves, but not harmful. Tegan decided she’d take a break for lunch, as she’d picked berries just yesterday that were begging to be eaten.

As she moved further into the woods, she noticed a change in the terrain around her. Slate ledges dressed in moss and ivy rose around her gradually as she continued on her way and she recalled school lessons on geography and great frozen glaciers carving their way through the lands. These ledges, she knew, were caused by them and she also knew where there were ledges, there were usually small caverns, or even caves. Unsure of how far the next village or small town might be, she made note of that in her head, in case she needed somewhere to slumber or keep dry from potential rain.

The ledges also became a pleasant place to stop and eat. Tegan found a nice plateau that looked over more of the forest below. The sun shone through a break in the tree canopy here, and she had a nice spot to enjoy her lunch of berries, a small bit of jerky, and water at.

At first, the meal was uneventful. Tegan listened to the animals scurry about in the forest around her. The birds chirped and sung, chipmunks and mice skittered to and fro in the underbrush, a few squirrels darted over branches and across trees, chasing each other and barking loudly. 

Midway through a drink of water from her canteen, there was noise down below in the forest. Branches cracking underfoot and the swish of something running through leaves and bushes. Tegan recapped her water and stuffed the remainder of her meal, the jerky, into her bag as she scooted forward to the edge of her spot to peer down into the woods below.

There was a flash of a cream color, standing out starkly against the green and brown of the surrounding around. At first, she thought it just a deer - a normal, wild deer - but then she say legs, an arm, and for the briefest second there was the glimpse of a head with ears perked straight up. Someone was running from something, but Tegan couldn’t tell what was pursuing it. 

She jumped to her feet, rushing down the path to find some kind of trail down into the woods where the other person was. Tegan was hoping she could catch them ahead and find out what was wrong, or help them somehow. A small path appear to her right and she made her way through it, carefully navigating her way through the rocks and the ledges before she landed again on the dirt floor of the forest. 

There, she paused, her own ears pricked upright, trying to hear where the other person might be. The forest was silent now, and Tegan strained to catch any small noise. 

Then, she heard a scrape close by and it spooked her. She spun around, looking for where it might have come from. Behind her was a towering wall of slate and stone and she could look up and see about where she had been eating just moments before. When she looked down, along the base of the wall, she saw a dark arch - a cave entrance, or perhaps a simple break in the ledges, deep enough to hide in.

Tegan took a deep breath, unsure what might be making the noise she heard in the cave. Yes, it could be the person she just saw running, but it could also be something else. A bear, a mountain lion, something more sinister. She wasn’t sure what these woods held, after all, and she was on her guard now as she moved closer to the dark entrance.

A gasp came from inside the small cave entrance and Tegan slowed her pace towards the dark place. “Hello?” It was better than creeping around silently, she figured, and better to let someone - if it was a someone and not a something - know that there was a friendly party outside. “I think I just saw you running from something? I just wanted to know if you were okay.” If there was one thing Tegan had discovered so far on her journey, it was that the animal people of the forest were quite capable of taking care of themselves and didn’t need much in the way of help.

After a moment, footsteps could be heard inside the cave and shortly after that, a rabbit girl appeared in the entrance. She looked shaken, that was for sure, and she was dressed in what Tegan could assume were expensive clothes because they looked like the fabrics at the craft shop in the city she kept away from because she couldn’t afford them. A floral dress, with a tulle petticoat peeking out from the hem, a fur shawl that she held tightly around her shoulders, heeled shoes with now tattered ribbons tied around them, lacy tights that now had runs through them, little tufts of cream fur peeking out through the holes. Around her throat, there was a beautiful golden pendant with shimmering stones set into it. On her hand, a dainty golden ring with a heart. Looped over one arm, dangling from the inside of her elbow, was a pink purse streaked with dirt and grass stains.


	8. Rabbit

“Something was chasing me,” the rabbit finally said as she looked past Tegan and into the forest beyond her, “But I think it might’ve just been a fox or a raccoon.” The confession made Tegan poker face, as she didn’t want to laugh and embarrass the girl after what must have been something quite terrifying for her. After a moment, the girl looks at her and finally cracks a small smile, “Goodness, that does sound ridiculous, doesn’t it?”

Tegan nods in agreement, smiling herself, “I wouldn’t feel too bad for it, though. Better a raccoon than a bear, I’d think.” Raccoons could be pretty wily and feisty, so it wouldn’t be a surprise if one did give chase. “I’m going to guess you probably don’t live out here in the forest,” she asks as she steps forward to the cave where the rabbit girl stands. She didn’t want to assume it automatically, but given the other girl’s manner of dress, romping in the wilderness probably wasn’t something she did.

The girl shakes her head, “No, no,” she says, making a feeble attempt to brush off her dress and adjust her outfit, “I—,” she hesitates, as if she’s not sure she should even tell the story of how she got out here, “I live out here with my parents. Well, I do now, ever since the curse happened.”

“The curse? Were you cursed, too?” Tegan’s almost excited to find someone else in her same predicament. The other animal people she’s come across in the woods have, well, always been that way, or so they’ve claimed. 

The rabbit girl looks at her with surprise, “You, too?!” She seems just as shocked, and just as excited. “It happened in the winter—”

“By a woman who looked like a mink—”

“Yes! Who said that ‘when the seasons change—”

“So shall you!”

They both erupted into giggles, which echoed through the nearby cave opening, filling the forest with their voices and causing birds nearby to take flight into the skies above. 

“I was so worried it might’ve just been me! I’ve been travelling for days, searching for this magic forest everyone keeps talking about. I want to find this mink woman, and undo the curse,” Tegan explains, “I don’t know if it’s simply a wild goose chase, but I’ve figured it’s my best hope.”

“When it happened,” the rabbit begins, “My parents thought I was ill. They shuttered me up to this little cottage we own. They thought they could cure me, but they didn’t want anyone else to see me. The pride of the affluent, I suppose. It wasn’t too bad, but they wouldn’t believe me about the mink woman. They were sure whatever I had was an isolated case, but I just think they didn’t want to believe the stories about animal people deep in the woods. I didn’t intend to run away today, but I guess I’d just become fed up with them not listening to me.”

Tegan almost felt guilty for her departure from her family being more subdued and hopeful. After the initial panic her mother had, things calmed down and Tegan explained what had happened and they thought of what should be done. Eventually, he mother suggested finding this woman who cursed her. Or, at least, trying to. While her mother wasn’t superstitious or a heavy believer in things out of the ordinary, she too knew about the stories of strange animal people in the woods and how the forest held magic the humans had long since lost. With her daughter sitting in front of her with the face of a deer, she knew there must be some truth in the tales.

“Do you know if there was a reason for your curse? I’ve still not been able to figure out mine. I’d been helping someone in the village after that bad blizzard in January and this woman in a cloak shuffled past me, whispered those words, and then simply left.”

The rabbit girl nods, “I remember, it was after Thanksgiving. I was in the city with my mother and we were shopping for gifts for Christmas. I remember seeing the big tree in the city, where you can leave gifts for charity, and I’d gone to look at the tags, because I wanted to help. As I was picking out the tags I thought I could fill, a woman was next to me,” she pauses, squinting in thought, “She had a hood covering her head! I remember hearing those words and looking over, but she was already leaving. I didn’t think much of it at the time, of course, but the words wouldn’t leave me. Then, of course, winter passed and the seasons changed, and well, so did I.”

“But why would someone curse people who are doing good things?” Tegan couldn’t understand the logic there. Both her and the rabbit girl were trying to help others. So why would this cloaked mink woman want to curse them?

“Maybe she hates kindness?” The rabbit girl suggests with a small shrug of her shoulders, “Because I’m not sure I have any idea otherwise. It doesn’t make a lot of sense.”

The two fall into silence for a few moments, before Tegan breaks it, “We’ve been talking all this time and haven’t even introduced ourselves to each other!” It was a sudden, out of the blue realization for her and she offers a hand out to the other girl for a handshake, “I’m Tegan Deerfield.” When she says her name, she realizes how silly it must sound now that she is indeed a deer-like creature.

The other girl seems equally surprised that they’d been talking so long without even knowing each other’s name. “I’m Maribel Teaberry,” she says, as she shakes Tegan’s hand. “Which does, honestly, seem a fitting name for a rabbit,” she muses with a smile before inquiring, “Are you travelling alone? If you are, would you mind company? Seeing as we’re both on the same sort of quest now, and all?” Maribel is polite about it, but hesitant, unsure if the other girl would even want a travelling partner. However, when Tegan’s face lights up and she nods, Marbiel is relieved.

“Absolutely! I would love to have someone to travel with!” Although Tegan was concerned about the other girl travelling for long in what she was wearing, especially the shoes, but she saw a village on the map that she was planning to arrive in by nightfall and they could figure out better travelling clothes there. “Will you be alright walking far in those heels? I have a pair of simple flats in my bag if you’d like to wear them instead?” 

Maribel nods, looking down to her heeled feet and then over to Tegan’s own shoeless, cloven feet. “Has it been hard to go barefoot,” she asks the other girl curiously.

Tegan herself looks down and shakes her head, “I tried wearing boots for the first day or two, but they just didn’t work,” she taps her hoof-foot against the ground, “They’re pretty sturdy, though, and haven’t given me any troubles.”

“Well, I mean, it’s not as if rabbits wear shoes and, to be honest, I’m only making myself suffer in these,” she says, regarding her heels before she carefully pulls them off, one at a time, to reveal very rabbit-like feet. Maribel gingerly places one bare, furred foot after another onto the dry dirt and stone beneath her feet and sighs with relief, “That actually feels amazing,” she admits, then looks at the shoes in her hands, “I guess I won’t be needing these anymore.”

“Oh! We can take the ribbons off of them, they might be useful,” Tegan suggests and is sure they could be used for tying things up or even as a pony-tail holder. Maribel passes the shoes over to the deer girl, who sits down to carefully remove the wide ribbons from the shoes. “I think I have a simple bag in here, if you’d like to use it,” she rummages inside her own knapsack before producing a simple, small canvas bag with a long strap. “You could put your handbag in it, or anything else you might need.” It was big enough to probably hold Maribel’s fancy pink handbag, as well as a bit of food and a small canteen or flask. Tegan offers the bag over to the rabbit girl, who takes it. 

“Thank you, this will definitely be easier than carrying this small thing though the woods.” Despite Maribel’s obvious rich upbringing, she was surprisingly obliging in regards to this new wilderness hike they’d be setting out on. The girl puts her handbag into the canvas sack and loops the strap over her head, so it lays cross-wise across her body, freeing up her hands. 

Tegan re-organizes her knapsack and returns it to her back. Her satchel, which holds small items and her food, she places on her the same way Maribel does her own bag. Then, out of the satchel, she pulls out some jerky, offering some to her new travelling companion, “Homemade jerky, if you’re hungry at all,” the girl says before looking upwards to where she had run down from originally, “We’ll have to head back up, but the way I came down was pretty easy, so I don’t think it’ll be much trouble. The main trail is just a short distance from there, then we should probably make it to the next village on the map by nightfall.” 

“Are you worried about these woods at night?” Maribel asks the other girl as they start to head back up to the trail.

“A little bit, yes. But not much more than the woods I live in back home. I think, as long as we don’t stray too far off the path, we should be okay. It seems like the trail is well-travelled, so I’d imagine nothing too scary crosses it often.” At least, she hopes. Just seeing a bear once when she was younger scared her enough. She wouldn’t want to see one again when she was, essentially, in their territory.

The short hike to the main trail didn’t take long and was without incident. When they reached the trail, they shared some water from Tegan’s canteen before heading on their way, both wanting to reach the next village before the sun started to dip below the horizon.


	9. Bonfire

Tegan and Maribel had made it to the next village - which they were thankful actually existed and wasn’t just a ghost town - just as the sun was setting. They’d made good time, talking and chatting helped the hours and miles to pass much more quickly. By the time they got to the village, they had expended their food and water supplies. Maribel had been worried, at first, when Tegan made mention of it, but after the deer girl said she’d help the rabbit girl learn to find food and water in the forest, she was a little less concerned. 

In the village, which was larger than the others Tegan had come across and, as they proceeded to wander, they both wondered if it wasn’t more of a town. It seemed a lot, to Tegan, like her own village, with little shoppes for everything. 

Eventually, they found an inn with an empty room and were happy to get off their feet for awhile. Dinner was to be served in an hour, which came with their room fee, but would be hearty and filling. 

In the room, they talked about the rest of their journey and what they hoped to find. Maribel disposed of the tattered tights she had been wearing and Tegan helped to mend her dress, which had been torn while she was running. Maribel suggested staying in the town for a night or two, so they could prepared for the next part of their trip. It was a mutual agreement and both were happy about a day or two of downtime. Tegan suggested finding some better travel clothes for her rabbit friend and Maribel stated she wanted to find a sturdier bag so she could help carry items.

It was a good plan and one they were both excited about.

Dinner was a boisterous affair, with all the inn tenants coming down to partake, as well as others from the town. Neither Tegan nor Maribel had seen so many animal people in one place and it was a little staggering to witness. They mingled amongst the others, chatting and making small talk, as well as watching the mannerisms of the other animals. Tegan felt strange among them and wondered if she didn’t stick out like a sore thumb before she remembered she looked like them and it’s not as if anyone there acted strangely. She fit in just fine, but it still felt strange. No one asked where they had come from, either, and Tegan wondered if maybe they all hadn’t once been human like her and like Maribel.

Maribel turned up the charm, all those years of dreadful wealthy parties made it very easy for her to talk people up. She laughed and flirted, enjoying the company around here, even if the way she ended up there wasn’t expected.

After dinner, they retired to their room and talked until they fell asleep. Maribel talked about her family and her childhood, Tegan talked about her own, as well. It was easy conversation between the two and both seemed to like that. Tegan was glad she had someone to travel with, that’s for sure.

The next day was met with warm sunshine and a casual walk around the town. The acquired food for their trip, more jerky, sourdough bread, and things that wouldn’t go bad quickly, things like peanut butter and honey. They also bought some fruit and vegetables - apples and broccoli - and were both excited when they found a shop that sold smoked salmon. Between the two of them, they could carry more food, so they also splurged on some sweets, as well.

The next part of their errands was to find some travelling clothes for Maribel. While her sleeveless dress was lovely, it wasn’t going to be good for their adventure. Tegan offered to share some of her own clothing, but Maribel wouldn’t hear of it. She had money and she would be happy to purchase some travel clothing for the both of them. Tegan insisted it wasn’t necessary, but Maribel tsk-tsk’d and grabbed her hand, pulling her towards some clothing shops.

In the shop, Maribel was a whirlwind of fluff and laughter. Pouring through racks of skirts and tops, dyed both subdued, forest colors of browns and creams and mossy green and pastel, springtime shades. Tegan was almost overwhelmed with her energy as the rabbit girl flitted about, taking clothing to the dressing room and showing off outfits. It wasn’t long, however, before she pulled Tegan into the dress up mayhem.

When they finally finished, the shopkeeper wrapped up their purchases and placed them in neat bags. Tegan and Maribel helped to return the un-purchased items to their hangers and racks, not wanting to leave mayhem in their wake. They bid the shop owner a good day and headed back out into the streets to return to the inn with their loot for the day.

Upon returning to the inn, the innkeeper’s wife asked them if they were going to be attending the bonfire that night. Neither of them had heard about it, naturally, not being from the area, they said. The woman insisted they should go, as it’s a great, fun celebration for everyone. Food and dancing, singing and mingling, everyone always has a good time. The two girls looked at each other and shrugged before nodding. Yes, they would certainly make it and it sounded like a lovely time.

That evening, the town grew louder with new voices and new people. Tegan said it reminded her of the fair that would be held at the end of the summer back home in the country. Lots of people came from all around to celebrate a good harvest, to share their wares, and to ride rides and enjoy themselves. Maribel said she’d never been to a fair or a festival like that before, but she figured if she did so well during dinner the night before, she’d be fine. Tegan agreed and looked forward to the bonfire and the festivities, whatever their reason. 

In the town square, which was quite large to begin with and seemed to accommodate the new influx of people quite well, a great bonfire was made of logs and sticks, branches and kindling. It sat, still and unburning as Tegan and Maribel wandered about, cups of fresh berry juice in their hands as they chatted with people. When the sun finally dipped below the tree line, the townsfolk gathered around to watch the mound be set aflame. After, there was indeed singing and dancing, songs neither Tegan or Maribel knew, but were easy enough to pick up on. 

Amidst the dancing and the singing, Maribel grabbed Tegan’s arm to point out a woman she thought she recognized. Tegan recognized her as well, she knew she did. It was the mink woman. She was without that cloak she’d worn on that cold winter day, but her face remained the same and even with the change in the color of her fur - from the white winter to the dark brown spring and summer - Tegan knew that face. Now, she was dressed in a cream-colored dress with a dark green shawl over her shoulders. Necklaces dangled down her front, gold and glinting in the lights from the fire. 

“That’s her! Maribel, that’s her!” Tegan grabbed her rabbit friend’s hand and they weaved through the crowd of singing and dancing townspeople. “Keep an eye out so we don’t lose track of her!”

“I’m trying,” Maribel exclaimed over the noise around them. Her pace was partial hopping as she tried to get a better look above the crowds. “She’s still there, I don’t think she’s going anywhere,” the rabbit girl said to her friend, “Wait, wait! She’s leaving! She’s—crap! She disappeared!” 

They burst forward from the crowd and into the fringes of the celebrations, looking around and trying to catch their breath. To a man standing nearby, Tegan inquired, “The woman who was here, just now, the mink in the green and cream, who was she? Did you see where she went?”

The man nearby, a sparrow, looked over to the empty spot where the mink woman was, “Ah, her? Don’t know her name,” he chirps to the two girls, “See her in town on holidays, sometimes, though. Think she lives up in the northern wood. Don’t know much about her, though.” 

Tegan and Maribel look at each other and sigh, discovering another dead end. “Thank you anyhow!” They both say as they decide to wander off in the direction Maribel saw the woman go. “She couldn’t very well have disappeared,” the rabbit says.

“But she could have! She’s a witch! If she cursed us, why couldn’t she disappear? Why was she here? Has she been following us? What if this is a game to her?” Tegan was becoming frustrated at the sudden change of events and Maribel made her stop on the cobblestone side road and take a breath.

“Everything will be fine,” she said, “We’ll find her, it’s obvious she lives somewhere out here. She couldn’t very well live around humans, right? We’re getting closer, I think, and maybe she’s scared.”

Tegan’s eyes were tearing up because of how upset she was and she took a deep, shaky breath and nodded, wiping at her face with her hands, “Yeah, you’re right. It’ll be okay, it’ll just take time, right?” 

Maribel smiled a little and nodded, “All good things take time,” she said, “Now let’s take a walk, calm down, and see if we might be able to spot her again, huh?”


	10. Winter

She had always been winter. 

Soft, quiet, soundless. She crept through the landscape without a crunch of snow beneath her small feet, without the wind whipping through her cloak. She was part of the rolling hills, the pine needle trees, the brick and mortar, and the winter sun. 

It had been too long since she’d been human herself. So long that she scarcely remembered it. Though it was there, hanging heavy within her heart, the last warm remnant of what she had been before the curse.

For her, the witch had been a bear. A mother bear who had lost her cubs one spring to human hunters. Back then, all of the forest was magic and you could feel it in the air. No, the animals couldn’t speak, but they could work the magic from the forest and when that mother bear cried mournfully into the air as she found her babies, everyone in earshot was cursed.

When winter came, everyone began changing into something they’d never been before. Animals of all shapes and sizes. There were families of badges and squirrels, families of cats and dogs, rats and mice. All who had heard that mother’s wail were forever changed. Most were in the forest, but there were many who’d been visiting or vacationing who’d heard it, people who lived in villages and cities and places far away from that pocket of magic.

Many things happened to those who were first cursed. Some were killed for being abominations, some fled their homes and their families, some went into hiding and kept themselves secluded. Some joined freakshows, fitting in somewhere. Those in the forest banded together.

It’d been many years since then, though it seemed like those who were cursed aged much slower than they should have. They ticked birthdays and years off the calendar, but they stopped counting. They began to feel it was easier to just ‘be’, to just exist in the forest and do better than what they’d done to become cursed in the first place. The forest was safe, but the magic was dangerous. 

She had not wanted safety. She didn’t know what she wanted, to be honest, and she was sure she’d never know in a million years. She went deeper into the forest than anyone else did, following the magic and hoping to understand it and help find a cure, find a way to uncurse them. But magic is funny and magic doesn’t always work the way it does in storybooks and fairytales. It was never a magic that could be undone. It was a twisting, tangled thing, draping over itself and tying itself into knots constantly. It was perpetual, always changing, never going back.


End file.
